You should know what to do if your printer is displayed as offline. Possible causes are a defective USB port or network problems.
Printer offline, what to do: Common causes for devices with USB connection
If your printer suddenly appears offline, it can be frustrating, especially if you need to print documents urgently. However, if your printer is connected to your computer via USB, the solution to the problem may be easy to solve.
- First check whether the device is actually switched on.
- A loose cable is often the reason why the printer is not recognized. Therefore, check whether the USB cable plugged in correctly is.
- One defective USB port or a damaged printer cable can also cause your printer to appear offline. In this case, replacing the cable or trying a different USB port can help.
- If your printer goes into the Energy saving mode changed it will also appear offline. Even after switching to normal mode, it may appear offline. Restart it and reconnect it to the computer.
- Go to the Windows Control Panel and click on “Show devices and printers”. Then right-click on your printer and click on “Printer Properties”.
- Under the tab “Security” the checkboxes should be “Allow” be set.
- If nothing helps, reinstall the device and driver. To do this, follow the installation instructions in the printer manual.
If your wireless printer is shown as offline: This could be the reason
If you have a wireless printer, the problem is often with the network. In addition to these tips, it is a good idea to also follow the instructions in Chapter 1.
- Make sure your printer and router are turned on.
- Restarting the router can often resolve network issues and bring the printer back online.
- The device should also be in the same Wi-Fi network like the computer.
- To connect it to the network, enter the IP address and password of the WLAN. You can find out exactly how this works in the manual for your printer.
What else you can try if your printer is offline
If the printer is offline, there can be many other causes, but these can usually be resolved.
- Use your operating system's troubleshooting tools to automatically identify and fix the error. Windows and macOS provide built-in features for diagnosing printer problems.
- Some devices are shown as offline when the ink level in the cartridges falls below a certain level. By default, such errors are shown on the display. In this case, replace the cartridges.
- Also check if it has paper and if it can be fed into it.
- If none of our suggested solutions help, contact support or consult the operating instructions to find possible error messages and their solutions.
- If your printer is older and often causes problems, you can also use a new device ponder.
Also interesting:
- Printer does not print: The most common errors & solutions
- Printer status “paused” – what you can do
- HP printer doesn't scan – this could be the reason